Lubricating system for traveling motors



G. H. CURTISS.

LUBBICATING SYSTEM FOR TRAVELING MOTORS.

APPLICATION FILED 050.11.1914.

1,329,038, Patented Jan. 27, 1920.

FIG. 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GLENN H. CURTISS, F HAMMONDSIORT, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN-MENTS, TO CURTISS AEROPLANE AND MOTOR CORPORATION, OF BUFFALO, NEW

YORK, A CORPORATION or NEW YORK.

LIIIBRICATING SYSTEM FOR TRAVELING MOTORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Janizv, 1920.

Application filed December 11, 1914. Serial No. 876,716.

' a citizen ofthe United States, residing at I-Iammondsport, in thecounty of Steuben and State of New York, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Lubricating Systems for Traveling Motors, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to motors and particularly to motors employed inaircraft.

Difliculties have heretofore been experienced in the lubrication andoperation of aircraft motors, especially motors used on aircraft of theheavier than air type, due to the unusually severe conditions of serviceto which aeroplane motors are subjected. The object of my inventionis'to minimize these difliculties and I accomplish this by the provisionof a lubricating system such that, regardless of the positions assumedby the craft in practice, and regardless of the severe conditions ofservice, an ample quantity of lubricant may be supplied at all times tothe moving parts of the motor, and the motor is neitherunder-lubricated, overl'ubricated or flooded at any time. The operation'of the motor is thereby rendered more certain and reliable, and thecraft as a whole thereby rendered more safe and secure.

In brief, in its broad aspect my invention comprises a drainagereservoir in fixed position upon the aircraft for receiving oil fromdifferent parts of the motor and the position of the oil in which shiftsfrom one portion thereof. to another as the inclination changes duringthe travel, and means whereby the oilis drawn or pumped from'saidreservoir during and regardless of said inclination changes. Morespecifically speaking my invention comprises a crank case drainagereceptacle arranged to receive the oil draining from the lubricatedbearings, and the oil in which shifts from one end to another as theinclination of the motor is changed in travel, a pair of circulatingpumps, one drawing its supply from one end of said drainage receptacleand one from the other, an elevated supply reservoir fed by saidcirculating pumps, and an additional force feed pump passing oil fromsaid supply reservoir to the bearings of the motor. My inventionincludes details of theconduit system and the regulation of the forcedfeed pressure as well.

. In the accompanying drawings I show that form of my invention ndw bestknown to Figure l is a diagrammatic illustration of the system, and

Fig. 2 is asectional view of one of the pumps.

The parts may be identified by the reference numerals with which theyare designated'upon the drawings, and are characterized individually asnow. set forth.

(10, 10) The cylinders of an internal combustion motor.- The motorsusually installed upon aircraft are of this character,

but as respects my invention, the motor may be of any other character,operated by one source of power or another, and may be of thereciprocating or the rotary type.

(11) The pistons of this motor.

(.12) The crank shaft.

(13) The connecting rods.

(14) The cam shaft. shaft and the cam shaft are hollowed out to formconduits through whichoil may pass to the crank, connecting rod, and camshaft bearings. The branches from the crank bearing conduits extendthrough the bearings, and through the connecting rods 12, to the pistonpins which are likewise hollowed out, and deliver oil through restrictedapertures to the Walls of the cylinders themselves. The details of theseapertures and the plugging up ofthe ends of the several hollow shaftsand pins to properly confine the oil to the conduit system so formed,eonstitute no part of my present invention, the claims of thisapplication being directed more especially to the system of lubricationset forth.

(15) The motor casing inclosing the main moving parts.

(16) The crank ease drainage receptacle arranged longitudinally of themotor receive the oil draining from the lubricated parts. Thisreceptacle is really in continuation of the casing 15 being suitablyconnected thereto in any well known manner.

(17, 17) A pair of circulating pumps located one at each end of thedrainage receptar-le 16 and drawing its supply therefrom- These pumpsare preferably of the Both the crank gear pump type as indicated in Fig.2, but they may be of any other type.

(18) A drive shaft for the pumps located at the bottom of the receptacle1G and extending longitudinally thereof, the drive gears of pumps 17being mounted on opposite ends of this shaft. Preferably this shaft isof tubular form to secure maximum lightness.

(19) An elevated supply reservoir into which the circulating orscavenging pumps 17 deliver the oil which they draw from receptacle 16.This supply reservoir is preferably at a level from which the oil mayfeed by gravity to the various parts of the motor to be lubricated.

(20) An additional circulating pump also driven from shaft 18 andlocated alongside of one of the pumps 17. This pump takes oil directlyfrom the supply reservoir 19 and delivers it to one end of the hollowedoutcam shaft 14. This delivery is made through the inclosing casing 15of the end bearing, whereby as clearly indicated the bearing itselfserves as stuffing box for the connection with the rotating shaft 14.

(21) A throttle valve associated directly with the open opposite end ofcam shaft 14. The seat of this valve is formed by a bushing secured inthe open end of the shaft and rotating therewith, the valve opening ofthe seat being concentric. The stem of the valve is threaded throughcasing 15, and provided with a suitable jam nut for holding it inadjusted positions. r

The operation of the system will be readily understood from thedescription already given. As the inclination of the traveling motor ischanged, the bulk of the oil draining from the lubricated parts runsfirst to one end of the receptacle 16 and "then to the other. No matterwhich end the oil occupies, there is a circulating pump 17 which drawsit out and delivers it to the main supply reservoir 19. Under normalconditions both of these pumps are pumping oil. The fact that one of thepumps may deliver air to the supply reservoir is of no moment, sincethis reservoir is as usual provided a suitable air vent. The additionalcirculating pump 20 is constantly forcing oil from the supply reservoir19 through the bearings of the motor to properly lubricate the same.Inasmuch as the reservoir 19 is a main supply reservoir and not adrainage reservoir it may be placed transversely of the plane ofinclination of the motor under varying conditions, and the supply oflubricant is therefore seldom if ever interrupted-by shifting the bodyof lubricant in the reservoir. The pressure of the forced feed isdetermined by the throttle valve 21, and it will bev observed that thedischarge through this valve is inside of the casing 14 whereby itdrains directly into the crank case receptacle 16,

thereby obviating the necessity for any special bypass conduit and thenecessity for making joints therefrom to the casing or to any conduit orpump.

Particular attention is directed to the specific location of the pump17. An aeronautical motor, in use, often assumes a substantiallyvertical position and as a consequence the oil contents of the drainagereservoir must. gravitate to the lower end of the motor. By utilizingthe dual pump system and arranging the pumps as specified at the,opposite terminals of the drainage reservoir, the lubricant under allcircumstances is fed to the supply reservoir 19. Each pump 17 ispreferably of a pumping capacity sufficient to scavenge. the drainagereservoir and accordingly preclude the accumulation of lubricanttherein. The accumulation of oil in the drainage reservoir isundesirable in motors of the aeronautical type in view of the unusualpositions necessarily assumed by the motor while in use. since suchaccumulation often results in flooding the cylinders and stalling themotors. No back flow of lubricant.- is possible from the reservoir 19 tothe drainage reservoir and flooding is therefore avoided even in theupside down position. It will also be observed that the pumps 17 arelocated in the approximate plane of the d ainage reservoir and in suchproximity to the terminals thereof as to insure the required pumpingaction without regard to the angle of inclination of the motor. The pump20 is breferablryof a lesser pumping capacity than that of the pump 17although it may be, if desired, of equal pumping capacity, butnevergreater.

It will be readily understood by those skilled in the art afterunderstanding my invention that as many pumps 17 associated with as manydifferent portions of receptacle 16 may be provided as desired, and atdifferent elevations, so that the motor may be adapted for travel at anyinclination Whatsoiwer, on end or even up side down.

lVhat I claim is:' 1. A lubricating system for aeronautical 'motors,comprising an oil reservoir, feeding means supplying oil to the motor,an oil drainage reservoir, and a plurality of scavenging pumpsestablishing communications between said reservoirs and arranged toeither independently or collectively return oil from said drainagereservoir to the supply reservoir according to the position of themotor, said supply reservoirs being otherwise closed to said drainagereservoir for the purpose set forth.

2. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors, comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive oil draining from the various parts of themotor, and a plurality 'of pumps adapted each independently toelevateoil from said drainage reservoir to a level from which it may pass againto the various parts of said motor to belubricated, at least one ofsaid-pumps being effective regardless of the angle of inclination of themotor, said pumps forming the sole outlets for lubricant from saidreservoir.

3. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir adapted to receive oil draining from the moving parts of themotor, a supply reservoir closed to said drainage reservoir exceptthrough a pair of outlets leading from dif ferent points of saiddrainage reservoir and spaced along the longitudinal axis of the motor,and a pair of scavenging pumps associated respectively with said outletsfor withdrawing the used lubricant from said drainage reservoir andforcing the same into said supply reservoir.

4. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors,-comprising a drainagereservoir arranged longitudinally of the motor and adapted to receiveoil draining from the moving parts of the motor,-said reservoir having asingle pair of outlets for the lubricant contained therein, said outletsbeing distributed longitudinally ofthe motor, and a pair of circulatingpumps, one of said pumps drawing its supply from one of said outlets andthe other from the other of said outlets. 1

v5. A lubricating system for the motors of aircraft comprising adrainage reservoir ar-. ranged longitudinally of the motor, a pair ofcirculating pumps, one of said pumps drawing its supply from one end ofsaid reservoir and the other from the other end thereof and a supplyreservoir adapted to receive oil from saiddrainage reservoir, saidsupply reservoir being in communication with said drainage reservoirsolely through said circulating pumps.

6. A lubricating system for traveling motors, comprising a drainagereservoir arranged longitudinally below the motor, a drive shaftextending longitudinally of said drainage reservoir at the bottomthereof, and a pair of circulating pumps located one on each end of saiddrive shaft and each drawing its supply from the corresponding end ofsaid reservoir.

7. A lubricating system for traveling motors, comprising a drainagereservoir ar ranged longitudinally below the motor, a drive shaftextending longitudinally ofsa-id drainage reservoir at the bottomthereof,

and a pair of circulating pumps located one on each endof said driveshaft and each drawing its supply from the corresponding end ofsaidreservoir, together with an elevated supply reservoir fed directlyby the aforesaid pairof pumps and a third circulating pump drawing 1tssupply from said supply reservoir and directly feeding the bearings ofthe motor,

scavenging 8. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising asupply reservoir, a drainage receptacle arranged to receive the oildraining from the lubricated parts, said drainage receptacle havingcommunication .With said supply reservoir through a plurality ofoutlets, aplurality of circulating pumps one for each ofsaid outlets,scavengfeeding to the interior of said shaft, and a throttle valveassociated directly with said shaft to regulate feed.

10. A lubricating system for traveling motors, comprising a hollowed-outshaft of the motor serving as a distributing conduit, a force umpfeed-ing oil directly to one end of said shaft through the casing of abearing inclosing the end thereof, and a throttle the pressure of theforced valve directly associated with the opposite end of said shaftwhereby the pressure ofthe forced feed may be regulated.

11. A lubricating system for inclosed mo= tors comprising a hollowed outmotor shaft serving as a distributing conduit, a motor casingterminating in an oil reservoir, a force pump feeding oil to theinterior of said shaft, and a throttle valve directly as-- sociated withsaid shaft and operable from Without the casing.

12. A lubricating system for motors comprising an inclosing casingterminating in an oil reservoir, a force feed supply system throughwhich oil is delivered under pressure to the incased parts of saidmotor, and an adjustable feed pressure regulating device located on theinside of said casing but operable freely from a point without thecasing.

. 13; A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive lubricant draining from various parts ofthe motor, and having distributing outlets. through which the usedlubricant may be scavenged, and a sca inging and feeding'system soarranged with respect to each o fsaid outlets and forming a part ofthelubricating system as to withdraw the lubricant from said drainagereservoir regardless of the angle of inclination of the motor.

14. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors-comprising a supplyreservoir, feeding means supplying oil to the motor from said reservoir,an oil drainage reservoir having a plurality of outlets, and a'plurality of pumps one for each outlet located in the approximatehorizontal plane of thereof, the drained lubricant, regardless Of' theangle of inclination of the motor.

16. A lubrlcatlng system for aeronautical motors comprlsing a drainagereservoir'arranged to receive oil draining from the various parts of themotor and having a plural:

ity of outlet openings, and a plurality of pumps. one for each of saidopenings mounted in the approximate horizontal plane of the longitudinalaxis of said reservoir adapted each independently to elevate oiltherefrom toa level from whence it may be again distributed to thevarious parts of said motor requiring lubrication.

17. A lubricating system for 'motors including a distributing conduitlocated interiorly of the motor crank case into which the oilis forciblyfed,.a means to forcibly feed the lubricant to said conduit, andpressure regulating means associated withand mounted at one end of saidconduit to extend without the crank case.

18. A lubricating system for traveling motors comprising a hollowed outshaft serving as a distributing conduit, a means forcibly feeding thelubricant to the interior of said shaft, and a means associated directlywith said shaft and extended without the crank case of the motor toregulate pressure of the forced feed.

19. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive oil draining from the various parts of themotor and .having a plurality of outlet openings, and "independentlyacting pumps one for each opening located at opposite ends of' thereservoir to withdraw oil therefrom regardless of the angle ofinclination of the motor for subsequent distribution to various parts ofsaid motor requiring lubrication.

20. A lubricating system for traveling motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive oil draining from various fparts of themotor. a distributing conduit,

a means directing oil under pressure to and through the conduit, abypass leading from the conduit and discharging again into thereservoir, and a means located at the jam-- ture of the by-pass and theconduit to regulate the pressure of the forced feed.

21. A lubricating system for traveling motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive oil draining from various parts of themotor, a distributing conduit, a means to forcibly feed the lubricant tosaid conduit, a by-pass leading from the conduit to the reservoir whollywithin the crank I case of the motor and a means located at the junctureof the by-pass and the conduit and extended without the crank case toregulate the pressure of the forced feed.

22. A lubricating system for traveling motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive oil draining from the various parts of themotor, a means operable regardless of the angle of inclination of theconduit to the reservoir and located wholly within the crank case of themotor, and means directly associatedwith said bypass and extendedwithout the crank case to regulate pressure of the forced feed.

24. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir ar ranged to receive oil draining from the various'p arts ofthe motor and having two outlet openings therein, and. 'a meansassociated with each of said openings operable regardless of the angleof inclination of the motor to continuously withdraw oil from saiddrainage reservoir for subsequent distribution to such parts of themotor asrequire lubrication.

25.-A lubricating system for aeronauti cal motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive oil draining from the various parts of themotor and having a plurality of outlet openings therein, and ameansassociated with each of said openings which is operable regardlessof the angle of inclination of the motor to continuously withdraw oilfrom said drainage reservoir for re-circulation throughout the motorparts requiring lubrication.

26-. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir terminally equipped with outlet openings and means operable towithdraw lubricant from said reservoir via at least one of said openingsregardless of the angle of inclination of themotor.

27. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged to receive oil draining from the vi rious parts ofthe motor, a supply reservoir either end of said drainage reservoir,anda force pump located in each of the communieating passages forscavenging the oil from the d 'amage reservoir regardless of the angleof inclination of the motor.

29. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir extending longitudinally of the motor and arranged to receiveoil draining from the various parts of the motor, a'supply reservoirfrom which the oil is adapted to be delivered to the motor parts, a pairof communicating ducts disposed between said supply reservoir and theends of said drainage reservoir, said ducts being distributedlongitudinally of the motor and forming the sole means of communicationbetween said reservoirs and a force pump located in each duct forreturning the used oil from either end of the drainage reservoirregardless of the angle of inclination of the motor.

30. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir disposed below and longitudinally of the motor, sald reservoirhaving a single outlet openng at either end thereof, said openingsformmg the sole outlets for lubricant from said reservoir, a supplyreservoir from which oil 1s adapted to be delivered to the motor partsand means operable to withdraw lubricant from said drainage reservoirvia at least one of said Openings regardless of the angle of inclinationof themotor.

31. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising'a drainagereservoirdisposed below the motor and having outlet openings at eitherend thereof, a supply reservolr from which oil is adapted to bedelivered to the motor parts, said supply reservoir being incommunication with said drainage reservolr solely through said outletopenlngs and a pump for withdrawing lubricant from said drainagereservoir via at least one of said openings regardless of the flylngpos1t1on of the aeroplane with reference to the horizontal.

32. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir disposed below and extending longitudinally of the motor, asupply reservoir from which oil is adapted to be delivered to the motorparts, a single communicating duct disposed between either end of thedrainage reservoir and the supply reservoir and. means for forcinglubricant from the drainage reservoir to the supply reservoir via saidcommunicating passagesregardless of the angle of inclination of themotor.

33. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir disposed below the motor and arranged to receive oil drainingfrom the various parts of the motor, a supply reservoir from which oilis adapted to be delivered to the motor parts, a communicating ductleading from either end of said drainage reservoir to said supplyreservoir, said duets being the sole means of communication between saidreservoirs, and means for withdrawing the used lubricant from the endsof said drainage reservoir through said communicating ducts andsupplying the same to said supply reservoir and for preventing thereturn of the lubricant from the supply reservoir to the drainagereservoir.

34:. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged longitudinally of and below the motor, a pair ofcirculating pumps located one on each end of said drainage reservoir andeach adapted t'o draw its supply from' the corresponding end of saidreservoir and means within said reservoir for driving said circulatingpumps in unison.

35. A lubricating system for aeronautical motors comprising a drainagereservoir arranged longitudinally of and below the motor. a drivingshaft extending longitudr nally of said drainage reservoir at the bottomthereof and a pair of circulating pumps located one on each end of saiddriving shaft 'andeach drawing its supply from the corresponding end ofsaid reservoir, and a supply reservoir which receives lubricant fromsaid pumps and supphes lubr1cant to the motor parts. I

36." In an internal combustion eng ne, a lubricating system thereforcomprising a drainage receptacle adapted to receive 011 dripping downfrom the moving parts of the motor, a supply reservoir from which oil isadapted to besupplied to the movlng parts of the motor, communicatingpassages between said receptacle and said reservoir, and means withinall of said passages preventing the direct return of oil from saidreservoir to said receptacle but permitting v of the used lubricant inthe fore and aft directionand from one end to the other, said drainagereceptacle lnwing a pair of longitudinally distributed scavengingoutlets leading to said supply reservoir, a scavenging system associatedwith said reservoir and said receptacle and adapted to withdraw the usedlubricant through at least one of said outlets and supply the same tosaid supply reservoir at all ordinary angles of inclination assumed bythe motor in practice, said scavenging system comprising meanspreventing any substantial backliow of lubricant from said supplyreservoir to said d 'ainage receptacle, and means for feeding oil fromsaid supply reservoir to the motor bearings.

38. In a motor, the combination of an oil supply reservoir, a drainagereceptacle arranged to receive the oil draining from the motor parts,said drainage receptacle permitting free and unobstructed flow thereinof the used lubricant in the fore and aft direction and from one end tothe other, said drainage receptacle having a pair of scavengi'ng outletswhich are located adjacent its fore and aft ends and which lead throughcomnmuicating passages to said supply reservoir, a pair of scavengingpumps associated respectively with said outlets and said passages andadapted to either collectively or individually withdraw the usedlubricant from said receptacle and deliver the same to said reservoir atall ordinary angles of inclination of the motor, the drainage receptacleand supply reservoir being otherwise closed 'to each other in order toprevent back flow from the reservoir to the receptacle, and forcelubrication means adapted to feed lubricant from said supply reservoirto the motor bearings.

39. A lubricating system for motors comprising a drainage reservoirarranged to receive lubricant draining from the motor parts, saidreservoir permitting free aml unobstructed flow therein of the usedlubricant in the fore and aft direction and from one end to the other,said drainage reservoir having longitudinally distributed scavengingoutlets through which the used lubricant may be drained, and ascavenging and feeding system so arranged with respect to each of saidoutlets and forming a part of the lubricating system as to withdraw theused lubricant t'roiu said drainage reservoir, and thereby maintain thesame substantially dr at all ordinary angles of inclination of the motorassumed in przu-tice.

40. A lubricating system for motors comprising a d 'ainage reservoirarranged to receive lubricant draining from the motor parts, saidreservoir permitting free and unobstructed flow therein of the usedlubricant in the fore and aft direction and from one end to the other,said drainage reservoir having longitudinally distributed scavengingoutlets through which the used lubricant may be drained, and ascavenging system so arran ed with respect to ea h of said outlets andtorming a part ot' the lubricating system as to withdraw the usedlubricant from said drainage reservoir, and thereby maintain the samesubstantially dry, at all ordinary angles of inclination of the m0- torassumed in practice, and means supplyin r the lubricant to the motorparts.

in testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GLENN H. CURTISS.

Witnesses:

G. R. I'IALL, H. C. GENUNG.

